If we follow our brand of cricket, nothing else matters: says Sachin Tendulkar
Former batting legend Sachin Tendulkar congratulated the Indian team on a convincing 151-run victory over England in the second test at Lord’s, which led the visitors to a 1-0 lead in the 5-test series.
In a recorded video, where Sachin answered questions sent to him by journalists, Tendulkar lauded Virat Kohli and his team for their grit and determination.
Going into the 5th day, a draw was the most likely outcome, but the final result showed just how much every member of the team believed they could win the Test. India had been denied a win in the first Test due to persistent rain, but they were not going to be denied again.
Mohammed Shami (56) and Jasprit Bumrah (34) added 89 runs for the ninth wicket as Kohli declared the Indian second innings at 298/8 after nine deliveries were bowled in the second session on Day 5, thereby setting England a target of 272 runs in 60 overs.
On being asked if India could have declared earlier, rather than come out to bat for a few overs after lunch as well and what the thought process was behind that, Tendulkar said, “Ya, possibly yes. If I was there, I would have got them in maybe for a couple of overs before lunch, so the openers would have to go up and down, it’s quite a walk up to the dressing room, so the openers have to go up, get ready quickly, rush down and play two overs and then again go and come back. So that kind of mindset, no opener likes to do that. I would have possibly done that and in case there was a partnership, one would have got maybe those three-four extra overs. But Virat had different plans. On a lighter note, you saw what happened to both openers, right? Uppar neeche jaake thoda saans chadd gaya tha, dono zero pe out huye. (The going up and down seems to have got to the openers, they must have been panting somewhat and both were dismissed for zero)”
Making his comeback into the Indian team, KL Rahul, who was in fact the third choice opener, after Shubman Gill and Mayank Agarwal, scored a magnificent 129 in the first innings to propel India to a total 364 runs after they were asked to bat first by England captain Joe Root.
But it was India’s fast bowlers who really won the Test for India. To bowl out England in their own backyard for 120 in their second innings is no small feat. The four fast bowlers (Ishant, Shami, Bumrah, Siraj) took all 10 England wickets between them. Siraj was the pick of the bowlers in England’s second innings, taking 4/32, while Bumrah had figures of 3/33.
Rahul was adjudged the Man of the Match for his brilliant century in India’s first innings. On being asked if he felt the choice of Man of the match was the correct one, Tendulkar, who had scored his first Test century at Old Trafford in Manchester in 1990, said, “I thought KL Rahul batted brilliantly, he was fantastic. But Siraj’s role was as critical, getting 8 wickets in a match, and to finish so strong, came and got those crucial wickets on the last day, also mattered a lot. They both are Indians, I would say joint. Hamaare paas rehna chahiye (the award should stay with us, that’s what matters).”
On the Indian lower order batsmen making useful contributions and not throwing away their wickets, Tendulkar said, “See in both Test matches, our tailenders have batted well. In the first Test match, Jadeja was there and if you remember, I had posted a tweet saying Bumrah has played the shot of his life when he pulled Sam Curran over square leg for a six. Brilliant shot that was.”
“But at Lord’s, that partnership, lower order added around 100 plus runs, that changed the game. On the fourth evening, who would have thought that we are going to retrieve 270 and then put the pressure back on the English team and close the game so emphatically. I thought it was magnificent to watch that aggression, spring in their legs was something, fast bowlers charging in, eye to eye contact, and hostility. It was not just josh (passion), it was hosh (clarity of thought) also. So that combination worked. You saw what Bumrah did. Bumrah came round the wicket to Ollie Robinson, bowled a couple of bouncers and that top class slower ball where Robinson had no clue what had happened to him. Those kinds of moments where you have clearly outsmarted your opposition, they stay with you for a long long time. But those batting partnerships brought us back in the match,” Tendulkar added.
Indian relied on their pace bowling quartet of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Siraj to deliver with the ball. There were raised eyebrows when Ravichandran Ashwin was not selected in the playing XI at Lord’s, where the surface is said to assist spinners. But the pacers bowled superbly in tandem and kept taking wickets regularly to bowl India to victory.
Tendulkar partly credited the IPL for the transformation of the Indian pace bowling attack, saying, “With our fast bowlers I think it is the bench strength. What according to me the IPL has done is, the IPL has given us exposure to a lot of youngsters. There are a number of eyeballs following these youngsters. And now I think there is more awareness as far as their diet is concerned, training methods are concerned, their discipline, focus, everything has come together. These are not one of those things which happen on their own, you need to earn these things and here’s a big congratulations to our fast bowling unit and the coaching staff. Everyone has put in a lot of energy and made things happen. This is, I think, as a unit, possibly the best fast bowling unit today in the world and they deserve that title according to me because they have really bowled well in foreign conditions where there is not much help to spinners, the fast bowlers have raised their hands up and turned the whole game upside down. And there have been match-winning spells. It’s not about bowling 35-40 overs and then getting 5 wickets, I think they have done so in quick succession, so according to me, they deserve all the accolades and the celebrations going around the Indian team, they deserve it.”
Sachin Tendulkar was part of India’s Test series win in England in 2007. That was the last time India won a Test series on English soil.
In response to a question asked by as to what message he would like to give to the Indian team, Tendulkar said, “To win matches you need good partnerships while batting, and to get 20 wickets you also need to bowl well in partnerships. I know the opposition is going to come back, and they’ll try and come back hard but as long as we stick to our brand of cricket, what we are out there to achieve, it really doesn’t matter what they plan. I have thoroughly enjoyed the brand of cricket that you have played. Kehte hain na ki josh achcha tha magar josh ke saath hosh hota hai toh results aur bhi achche lagte hain (They say that the passion was good, but along with the passion, if there’s clarity of thought then the results are usually even better). I am enjoying the way you are playing, all the very best.
”The one thing that Indian bowlers will have to figure out going into the remainder of the three Tests in the series is how to get England captain and arguably the best batsman in the English team currently, Joe Root out early. In the 2 Tests played so far, Root has scored 386 runs, at an average of 128.6. He already has 2 centuries and a fifty under his belt for this series and a highest score of 180*. He is currently the highest run scorer of the series so far, ahead of KL Rahul, who has 244 runs.
The impact that Root has had can also be understood by the fact that in the top 10 run scorers in the series so far, there are only 3 English batsmen (Root, Bairstow and Burns).
On being asked by TimesofIndia.com how Indian bowlers should plan to dismiss Joe Root early, Tendulkar said, “Joe Root is a busy player, he is someone who likes to rotate the strike, he plays couple of balls and then he is looking for a single here or there and if you give him room, he will either steer it to third man or punch it off the backfoot. I would say possibly, bowl tighter lines, to make sure the fielders don’t allow him to pick singles, to make him play big shots upfront. I know he doesn’t take many risks, he’s not going to go over the top, but at least he should not be picking those cheeky singles. So if he is going to punch the ball hard, that is when the hands are moving away from the body, little bit, to generate power and that’s where you stand a chance to nick him off. So I would say bowl tighter lines and fielders should also be tighter, easy singles should not be available.”
The third Test of the series begins on August 25 at Headingley in Leeds.
